Illumination
by Kyniska
Summary: Briar never looked back. Never saw what he had left. But when a girl from his past comes back to haunt him and he has to teach her, secrets are unlocked and spread into the open that Briar wished he could leave hidden. Rated for saftey and violence later
1. Chapter 1

**Hey peeps! Will you guys please read it and review? It's really good!**

**Chapter One**

Alyssa crept stealthily through the gardens and temples of the Living Circle. In her hands she held a burlap sack to carry food in. At one of the houses she found a high wall she couldn't climb.

"Mala's tricks." She cursed to the Umanin goddess of thieves. Placing the bag in her teeth she felt for a handhold on the wall. She found one quickly but if she climbed the wall in the darkness Alyssa knew she would lose her footing and fall. Breathing deep, she closed her eyes and looked inside herself. There. In her inner self she saw the well of golden light. She took a beam from it and brought it out to cover herself. When she opened her eye she was covered in a shimmering light through which she could easily see the wall. Easing herself up, she began to climb.

Upon reaching the top of the wall she sighed with relief and, without dousing her glow, leapt down. But- what was happening? Something had grabbed her and was wrapping itself around her arms and waist! Shaking, sweat running down her face, she turned.

Huge vines had twisted themselves to seize her and were holding her tight. Alyssa guessed she probably looked comical but there was nothing funny about this! She struggled and kicked to no avail. This was worse than being beaten for stealing, worse than letting down her sister. A mage was going to catch her. Her record was bad enough but… a mage who set plants to guard his or her garden? Alyssa gulped. What was going to happen to her?

xxx

"Up, lazybones!" Sandry stood over Briars bed, a feather duster in her hand. "Tris and I need you to lift the guarding spells on the back door so we can dust the patio!" She tickled him with the duster. Briar groaned.

"Girls." He muttered. "Always so fussy. I'm up, I'm up!" he added hastily when her eyebrows contracted as they always did when she was about to work a spell. "I like my night-shirt the way it is, thanks!" Sandry laughed.

"Oh, you. Well, hurry up then." She turned and flounced out the door. Briar sighed and lay back on his pillows, hoping to get a few more winks of sleep. Sandry's head popped back into the room. "Get _up_!" she cried, exasperatedly. Briars clothes jerked at him, dragging him out of bed and towards his wardrobe.

"_Okay_." Briar grumbled, snatching a pair of breeches and his favorite boots from the wardrobe. "Now get _out_." Sandry grinned and disappeared. Briar rolled his eyes.

After getting dressed Briar felt a strange tingling of green magic beside him. Turning, he saw a Yamani rose poking him in the shoulder. "What?" he asked, confused. The plant poked him again and turned, as though pointing, to face the window. Briar looked out the window and blinked. His Yanjing jasmine had something in its vines. Something large. "It's a person!" he gasped.

xxx

Alyssa hung limp in the vines' grasp. The sun was just coming up over the hills and her sack had fallen out of her arms. Her eyelids fluttered. Staying awake all night had been hard. She sighed. Was anyone_ going_ to come catch her? A sudden movement by the door startled her out of her tired trance. A young man opened the door and walked out into the garden. All the plants seemed to stretch towards him, turning to follow his progress as sunflowers turned to face the sun. Alyssa tried to hide her face to no avail. Her glow had still not gone out. She closed her eyes and felt a tear run down her face. She was going to end up like Celia.

"Now then!" the man's voice seemed kind. "Let her down! She won't run off." Alyssa felt the vines lower her and she shuddered. She felt hands steady her and a handkerchief was thrust into her hands. "Now dry those tears." The man told her. He sounded young, about Alyssa's age and his voice seemed familiar… Alyssa opened her eyes. It took her a minute to register who this person was.

"Roach." She croaked. "Roach!" Her legs crumbled beneath her and she fell to the ground.

xxx

Briar gasped as the girl hit the earth.

"A-Alyssa?" he breathed. "I-I thought… Alyssa? Alyssa!" he grabbed her and felt her wrist. "A pulse." He muttered. "She's just fainted. Sandry!" he yelled. Sandry burst out the door, fuming.

"I _told_ you to lift those guarding spells!" she cried out angrily. "Daja burned herself trying to get through!" She glared at him.

"It's not like she's that hurt by my guarding spells." Briar muttered. "But that doesn't matter right now! Sandry-

"Briar! There's a child here!" Sadnry interrupted him. Briar sighed.

"That's what I was _going_ to tell you." He grumbled. "Sandry, I know her. She was one of my best friends in Sotat! I thought she was dead!" He hid his face in his hands. Sandry narrowed her eyes in concern.

"What could she be doing here?" she wondered quietly. Briar shook his head. She shrugged. "Come on. Let's get her inside."

xxx

"Tris! Daja! Tris!" Tris's head snapped up and she almost dropped the inkpot she was dusting at Sandry's call.

"Nobles. So demanding." She set the inkpot and feather duster down. "Coming!" she called down the stairs. An odd acrid smell drifted up through the stairwell. Tris jerked her head back and wrinkled her nose. "Aloe." She muttered. "Well _that's_ for Daja obviously. But what's that other one?" she breathed in again. "Chamomile. But- that's for strength…" her face turned white. "And doesn't he know? About me? He can't have that in the house! Not with me-

"Tris!"

"Coming." Hitching up her skirts, Tris trotted down the stairs.

xxx

"Ow," Daja said weakly as Briar applied the thick aloe balm to her skin. "That _stings_." Briar glared at her.

"It's your own fault. You should know better than to right into one of my protective barriers." He snapped at her. His mind was preoccupied at the moment.

"Sandry." Daja mumbled, blushing. Briar whipped around to glare at the stich-witch but she had disappeared.

"Just like a girl." He growled. "There. Now don't go walking into any more protective spells for a few weeks all right?" Daja glowered at him and he lowered his eyes.

"Like I would." She muttered angrily.

"Like you would, what?" Tris -always dramatic- swept down the stairs to frown at both of them. "What's this about a friend of Briar's from Sotat? And what do we need ch- chamomile for?" She swallowed hard. Briar stared hard at her for a moment then shrugged.

"Alyssa's just a girl I knew back in Hajra. I don't really like her- a lot. My jasmine just caught her this morning…" he trailed off and glanced hopefully at his friends.

"Um. Okay." Tris frowned. "I wonder what she was doing here?" Briar turned away. Daja and Tris exchanged glances. Just then, Sandry pranced in.

"She just woke up." She announced to the silent room. "She's asking for a Roach? Is there a Roach here?" A ghost of a smile danced over Tris's lips. She hooked Briar's arm in hers and towed him out of his chair.

"Come on, you." She said. "Let's go see your Hajrain _girlfriend_."

xxx

Alyssa tossed and turned in her sleep. _Roach. Roach. **Roach.**_

_She ran down an alleyway, hard and fast. Feet pounded behind her, the echoes filling her ears and her mind. Glancing back she saw that Roach had fallen behind._

_"Roach!" she screamed. Back she ran. He was on the ground, slashes up and down his chest. "Oh Roach." She whispered, her hands pressing into his. Footsteps got louder behind her. She turned, hands up. "Murderers!" she screamed. "It's your fault! Your fault!" Light streamed from all corners, blinding her, blinding them…_

_And then she was drowning, her throat clogged up, her windpipe closing…and it was dark… so dark… Strong, tan hands grabbed her, pulling her towards her friend, the light. "Thanks." She mumbled._

_"Can't have you drowning, can we? We'll all get beaten for sure." He laughed. His laugh was so beautiful, so deep… No, she didn't want to be beaten. But in Elkìnya's Kingdom he wouldn't be there. Not for a while. No. But the light was gone… she was drowning again… where was he? Where would he be…? Was he alive? _

Alyssa woke up with a gasp. Her sheets were soaked with clammy sweat and she was almost as wet as she had been in her dream. She crouched, shivering under the blankets. He was so different. Was he that mage? She shook her head. That wasn't right. Roach wasn't a mage. He would have told her or Celia if he were.

She was still freezing. Warm sunlight gleamed in a corner. She reached out with a hand and called it, as a friend. Light was her friend; whenever anything went wrong it was always there. With light she was protected. With light she was safe. _I didn't always think that._ She reminded herself. _I thought it was Roach. I was always safe with him. _And then he was there. Along with someone else. A girl. She shivered. A girl. So he had forgotten. She sighed. Well, it didn't matter now. At least he was here. The sun had finally reached her. She wrapped it around herself, shaping it with her hands. She turned to the two other people.

"What?" she asked. The girl clutched Roach's shoulder.

"Briar." She whispered. "That girl- she, she has magic!"

**Sooo? You like? You review? Yes yes? **


	2. Chapter 2

Hi

**Hi! Thanks for the reviews everyone! I'm so happy! Well, anyway, here is a new chapter! Read on! SORRY IT'S SO LATE!**

**Chapter Two**

Tris stared at the girl, the silver glow of magic around her a beacon in her mind.

"B-Briar?" she asked timidly. "Do you _know_ this- Alyssa- has magic?" Briar was silent. He didn't nod or shake his head, but only stared meaningfully at Alyssa.

"She does." He whispered. "She pulled the light around her." They continued to whisper frantically, glancing at Alyssa fearfully every couple seconds. Alyssa slumped back on her pillows, exhausted. The sunlight came with her, keeping shadows away.

"A-Alyssa?" she turned. Briar was right next to her. "Look- I have to go. So… stay here. Be good. Tris will give you anything you need! Bye." He fled. Alyssa was left staring at this 'Tris'. She narrowed her eyes.

"Well, what do _you_ want, Fatty?"

xxx

Briar sped along the streets of Winding Circle, pulling on a coat as he went. Bursting into Discipline cottage he was confronted with Rosethorn and Pasco facing off.

"No dolt! Do you know what will happen if you do that when- Oh hello, Briar." The amber haired dedicate whirled around to face her former student. "What do you want? _Don't_ touch those, idiot!" she added to Pasco, who was looking curiously at her window box of herbs in the corner. "Now, what is it?" Rosethorn rose dusting off her hands and leaving Pasco with one more withering glance. Briar quickly explained what had happened that morning. He tactfully left out the part about him knowing Alyssa. Rosethorn's frown deepened with every word.

When Briar was done she scratched her head, turned, and stomped through the door to the kitchen.

"Lark! Niko! Get in here!"

Minutes later, the four mages were seated in the sitting room around a tray of tea and cakes (Lark was always hospitable). Briar repeated what he had told Rosethorn for the benefit of Niko and Lark. Niko was silent for a minute at the end. He lifted his teacup to his lips and Briar could see it was quivering. _Oh great_.

"Briar…" Niko had put down his tea. "Light magic is extremely rare and one of the most powerful magics in the world. I know of three people in the entire world who have it. Three. And you discovered her magic. So…" Briar groaned and smacked his forehead.

"Oh gods. I have to teach her now don't I?"

xxx

Back at the house Sandry was going through the burlap bag Alyssa had carried. As much as she trusted Briar's judgment, Sandry still remembered how Tris' cousin Aymery had tricked them and led pirates into Winding Circle. She found food, - obviously stolen- cheap jewelry, a comb, and a few pieces of parchment. Sandry was surprised at the parchment and made a note to see if anything was written on them. Then, feeling towards the bottom of the sack, she felt silk. She frowned. Why would a thief want a piece of silk? She drew it out of the bag.

Sandry held a small blue silk bag with gold pull-strings. It was quite heavy too. Sandry's forehead creased. What was this doing there? She tentatively opened the bag. She drew a circular medallion that gleamed yellow out of the bag. Sandry knew immediately from her lessons with Daja that it was pure gold. On one side a picture of a sun was carved as well as the name _Alyssa_ on the side. On the other, a small picture of a tree rose high and on the edge was the word _Roach_. There was also something written in tiny letters. Sandry squinted to see it and gasped. All of the names of the gods were carved along the edges of the medallion, and they were written in a dried red ink that looked strangely like… Sandry's eyes grew wide. What was a blood oath doing here, of all places, in this plain street girl's bag? And why did it have Briar's street name? She gathered the bag and the medallion and rushed into the bedroom.

xxx

Tris glared at Alyssa. No one had called her 'Fatty' for years and it stung now more than ever. She closed her eyes, fighting to keep tears from squeezing their way past her eyelids.

"_I _will ask the questions here!" she growled, almost acting like Sandry on all her Nobleness. Alyssa stuck out her tongue. Tris rolled her eyes. "That is so – so _kaq _like." She said, trying to think of a good insult to throw at the street-girl. Alyssa raised her eyebrows.

"Oh wow, really witty." She muttered. "Must write that one down sometime." Only one part of this registered in Tris's mind.

"You can _write_?" she asked, surprised.

"Oh, I'm not supposed to be able to?"

"No, but… it's just unusual to see a… thief knowing how to write."

"Oh, a thief am I? Well, what do you call yourself?" The words just slipped out of Alyssa's mouth without her meaning to. She gasped, and clamped her hands over her lips. Tris narrowed her eyes.

"I haven't stolen anything since I was… eight!"

"You stole Roach." Alyssa whispered. Tris's mouth dropped open.

"You - You think I… oh Mila!" Tris started to laugh. Alyssa looked at her fearfully, then leapt out of the bed and sped towards the door. She was at the door when Sandry walked in, bumping into her.

"Um… Tris?" she walked over, and slapped her sister on the back (she looked like she was going to choke.). "What is going on? Why was that child- Oh no" Sandry looked up. Alyssa was gone.

xxx

Alyssa ran through the streets of Emelan, her breeches damp with sweat. The light followed her, trying to ask questions about this sudden change of plans. She shoved it back until the only light around her was the same faint glow surrounding any person in the Living Circle Temples. She turned down a back alley only to feel a sharp knife pressed towards her throat. The cold steel chilled her blood and she turned back around very slowly. A dark, leering face peered at her.

"Well well, what have we here?" he chuckled. He grasped one of her arms. "Come one lovely. I'll take you out to lunch." She screamed and tried to tug out of his grasp. He laughed and started to unlace her high bodice. She screamed again and panicked, calling on the light to help her. Blinding sunlight streamed from the corners of the alley. The man cried out, clapping his hands over his eyes. Alyssa jerked out of his hold and raced away from the alleyway.

"Thanks." She muttered to the illumination as she went, Then, suddenly she remembered something. She had left her sack at Briar's house!

xxx

Briar trudged home, his hands in his pockets. Wonderful. Another student. Another _girl_ student. He sighed and glanced up at the sky. It was almost sundown. He swore. He had to get to Crane's greenhouse in… 20 minutes! He sped up into a run, passing by many fields and gardens which all asked him where he was going so quickly. He didn't stop to answer any of them.

Briar skidded to a halt just outside the greenhouse. Almost immediately, Crane burst out in front of him.

"Boy! Where have you been?" the wizened gardener snarled, his long hooked nose barely an inch from Briar's. Briar could smell what the old man had had for lunch – celery and lamb. He wrinkled his nose.

"I'm late, alright? Can we get over it and get to work on the shakkans?" He said, more snappy than usual, but then again, he had a lot on his mind.

Crane sniffed but didn't say anymore. The two turned and walked into the greenhouse.

xxx

Alyssa stood, her hands over her face, trying to think of anything that would help her out of this predicament. She needed what was in that bag. It had her food, her loot and… the oath. She shuddered, thinking of what the female mages might do to that. How could she have been stupid enough to leave it at the house? She kicked a small pebble in frustration and her only reward was sharp pain in her toe.

Helpless, she began to trudge, her hands in her pockets, along the road out of Winding Circle. She didn't have anything now. She was a street-rat still, but now she was a poor one. She would have to make a new start somewhere else. In the meantime, she could steal some food and find shelter with the other street-rats that one would find in any city.

Suddenly, she heard a sound behind her and just as she looked up, a cloth was placed over her face. She screamed, and tried to kick at whoever was now grasping her hands behind her back, but her position was too awkward, and the cloth was soaked in some sort of smelly liquid. Already her head was spinning.

"Well, well. We have found you at last." A cold and horribly familiar voice sounded beside her head. She snarled and tried to lash out, but then oblivion clouded her mind. Her last conscious thought as not a thought, but a string of words that spun wildly in her head.

_How? Roach. Murderers! Anoch… Oath… Mama…_

_Roach._

**So, what did you think? Yes, it's a cliffhanger - I don't really care! Anyway, I hope you like it! Please review, I'll try to be up with the next chapter sooner.**


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